[nabs-l] Social Stuff

[Sean Whalen]

It may be beside the immediate point, but is certainly relevant. Attributing
the inappropriate drawings to the fact that the roommates were gay is
completely absurd. Sure, the inappropriate content may have been different
inappropriate content had the roommates been heterosexual, but it would have
been inappropriate content just the same.

As a minority population that is often discriminated against, misunderstood,
and mischaracterized, I find it odd that some among us think it respectable
to do the same to other groups.

Believe me, there are plenty of college apartments with heterosexual content
that would offend many scrawled on their walls.

It bothered me when I first saw that message, but I decided to let it go.

Now that we're here, Meghan is 100% right. Here here and two thumbs up!

More to the immediate point, I don't think filthy apartments are any
indicator of social awkwardness or akin to eye poking, rocking, etc. While I
agree wholeheartedly with Arielle on the issue, I think it is also useful to
realize that social norms apply to the blind as well as the sighted. I don't
think it holds water to say that sighted people have their own idiosyncratic
things about them so it is OK for blind people to rock. Social norms matter.
How you look and present yourself matters. It is certainly inappropriate to
label every undesirable behavior of a blind child, e.g. obstinacy or
egocentricity as a symptom of social dysfunction, but I think it useful and
appropriate for parents to discourage behaviors, commonly called blindisms,
which only serve to perpetuate societies views on blindness and to further
set apart the blind individual as different.

Sean